The spirits of Christmas (part 4)

December 9, 2012

Gin but not as you know it

So far we’ve been keeping it dark and moody in the spirits of Christmas department, now it’s time to lighten things up a little. Only colour-wise mind; today’s choice may look defenceless and water-white in the bottle but don’t let that fool you, it could easily stand up for itself in a fight…

In fact, Cream Gin is something of a heavyweight both in terms of creativity and taste. Imagine it: gin given extra welly and buttery richness by infusing it with sugar and cream. And if that wasn’t enough to get your head around, here’s the super-clever bit: the cream is then extracted to make the whole thing look like gin again. Take that and stick it up your junipers.

Yes, yes, we know, slim-line this ain’t: that exceptionally creamy mouthfeel is down to the equivalent of 100ml of fresh cream laced into each 70 ml bottle. But hey, this is Christmas and who’s counting calories? We’re thinking festive indulgence of the most rewarding kind.

It was love at first sip when we tried it as the base of the fabulous Black Cat’s Martini at the Worship Street Whistling Shop a few years ago and happily the clever chaps behind the bar and the liquid have partnered up with Master of Malt so all of us can (try to) recreate the cocktail at home.

In theory at least. To our minds this seemingly effortless feat is best left to the professionals. Instead keep it simple and enjoy in a Dry Martini or Cream Gin and Coke.